Baek Ha Rim

"thanks for the meal, kyun-ah." i smiled as i took another spoonful of rice.

"eat to your heart's content. you will be working endlessly later." he said while mixing some red chili paste into his food.

i ate deliciously, feeling at ease with changkyun's presence. i was glad he made effort to visit me at work when we couldn't have dinner together. we sat by the glass walls, so i was able to see the view outside the restaurant.

"how long will you be working overtime?" changkyun asked.

"maybe an hour and a half? some employees also stay late so there might be a few of us left behind later."

i went to eat another spoonful and took my time chewing my food while looking at the city outside. i then drank some cola and went ahead to speak to changkyun once again.

"the company is far over there but it still looks really tall and big." i pointed out to changkyun and he nodded to agree.

i scanned my eyes around until suddenly, i caught sight of the ceo's black bmw from afar.

"wait..?" i straightened my back and focused my eyes on what i just saw.

the moment i confirmed it was his car, my heart starting racing a little bit. i slowly tilted my head, looking at it confused. i stared for a while, not bothering to take my eyes off until i make sure to see what was going to happen next.

"w-what are you looking at?" changkyun noticed and turned his head to see what was outside.

"kyun-ah, that black car over there is owned by chae hyungwon himself." i told him while remaining focused on the car.

changkyun quickly turned to me upon hearing what i had just told him. his mouth slightly opened in shock as he was probably not expecting it.

"you should take note of it next time. you might encounter him in that car yourself." i spoke about the possibilities.

"well, that would be great. i'd be honored to see the son of your parents' killer." changkyun smirked, feeling thrilled.

soon, the black bmw eventually started moving and went straight ahead. it was unusual to me why it would have paused on the road right outside the restaurant where changkyun and i were. suddenly, the same bothering thought went into my mind.

"kyun-ah, do i really appear suspicious?" i asked him.

"not at all, you're doing fine." he shrugged.

"okay.. maybe it's just me." i gave him a nod.

"i doubt chae hyungwon would catch on easily." he assured.

"last time, i saw chae hyungwon's fiancée being fetched and brought to the company by that car. maybe there might be a chance he would use the same car to bring his dad along with him. chances are slim, but according to chae hyungwon's driver, mr. chae hired him anyway." i spoke.

"you've even befriended the driver? you must be doing really well." changkyun smiled and quickly shoved a spoonful of rice in his mouth.

________________________________

checking the time on my wristwatch, i realized that it was already 3:47 pm. i had been working hard on the tasks, yet i have only fulfilled two out of the five different things i had to do.

thanks to the meal changkyun had treated me to, i had a lot of energy stored with me today. i started going back to proofreading some reports page by page as i had to make sure that i went keen on details.

time passed by quickly and as the clock striked past 5:30pm, rowoon and the rest of my officemates got ready to wrap up their tasks.

rowoon, who didn't have much to do, started walking around and sparking some conversation with the others while i was left in my cubicle, getting started on the third task.

suddenly, i heard someone softly call my name from behind.

"ms. baek ha rim?"

i turned around and looked up to see who it was. to my surprise, it was a woman who was quite unfamiliar to me.

and in her hands, there laid the yellow umbrella that i had lost days ago back at the bus stop.

upon seeing the item that she was handing out to me, i quickly stood up from my chair and received it while feeling shocked that it was with her.

"i was instructed to give that yellow umbrella back to you." she spoke.

"w-who found this?" i tried to ask.

"it doesn't matter, miss baek. i apparently cannot disclose who the umbrella came from." she simply smiled at me apologetically.

"ah.. alright. thank you for bringing this back to me, anyway. please do tell the one who had instructed you that i am very thankful to him or her as well." i asked of her.

she gave me a nod and we both exchanged bows as she left the office. i got back into my seat and tried to check if the umbrella was really mine.

"ha rim-ssi, we'll get going now! hope you can finish your work and go home early!" rowoon suddenly tapped on my shoulder and took his bag with him.

"oh, thanks rowoon-ssi. take care on your way home." i spoke.

i looked at the time and realized that i had an hour to complete my tasks. if i don't finish them, i'd have to no choice but to stay longer.

i started getting back to work, feeling frustrated that i was stuck at the third task as of the moment. i didn't understand why the tasks weren't disseminated to the others if they were urgently needed to be finished.

there were four of us left in the office but minutes later, one finished working and got dismissed.

after thirty minutes have passed, two more started leaving the place. soon, the only person left with me suddenly started grabbing his coat in an attempt to leave.

"ha rim-ssi! i'll go grab coffee with my wife first. she's in starbucks, will you be okay here?" he asked.

"y-yes.. i can manage, sir." i nodded hesitantly.

"don't be afraid of the place. i'm used to staying here late and there's no weird encounters or such." he smiled.

"alright sir, don't worry. i hope you enjoy your time with your wife."

"i'll be back about an hour later. see you!" he bid goodbye and left in a rush.

the office lights were already dim to conserve some energy because most of us have already left the place. however, it wasn't a problem and i even had a bright desk lamp whenever i needed it.

i proceeded to open the cap of my gel pen to write some notes, but suddenly, the ink leaked and eventually stained my palm.

"aish." i quickly stood up from my seat to head to the restrooms to wash it off before it dries.

i walked out of the office with my gel pen, trying not to stain my blouse. i was also able to grab a sheet of tissue on my way, so i dabbed it on my palm to remove the excess ink as i walked.

"miss baek."

suddenly, a familiar voice called out to me which immediately made me stop on my way.

slowly looking up infront with much expectation, i eventually saw that it was no other than chae hyungwon who i came across with.

i furrowed my brows the moment he smirked at the sight of me. he suddenly began to walk steps closer while i, on the contrary, took a few steps backward to maintain distance with him.

"s-sir.." i tried to call out to him as well.

he stopped walking when he was finally right infront of me. i had to lift my head up a little bit to meet his eyes because of his height.

"what brings you here, sir?" i asked, my voice slightly echoing across the empty hallway.

he leaned his side on the walls while crossing his arms. with a smile, he looked at my stained palm and then slowly moved his eyes back to meet mine.

i clenched my fist, holding onto the pen as tight as i could on my unstained hand which was right behind my back.

"are you all alone in the office now?" he asked.

"yes.. i was finishing up on the tasks assigned to me for the day." i confirmed, feeling a little tense.

"i know. you didn't have to finish them." he then released a slight chuckle, probably pleased i took the tasks seriously.

"w-what do you mean, sir?" i asked.

"i knew you were working on them because i specifically asked them to load you with work for the day." he smirked.

".. for what reason, sir?" i frowned.

"i wanted to have you stay a little bit longer than the rest because i wanted to grab this opportunity to meet you again." he smiled.

i kept silent, still holding onto the pen.

knowing that we both were alone, i wanted to stab him with it immediately if only i could.

but if ever i failed, i wouldn't be able to get away with it.

my eyes unconsciously shifted to the cctv camera that was at the top. i knew i couldn't hurt the ceo in such setting, knowing that there were probably eyes watching us.

leaning his face a little bit closer to me, he spoke with a soft deep voice.

"so," he spoke once again, bringing my attention back to him.

"did you like seeing your umbrella back again, miss baek? you know you should thank me for it." he smiled, more genuinely this time.

my eyes widened upon hearing his words. i turned to look at him, realizing he was the man at the bus stop.

"it makes me glad to see you working here in my company, baek ha rim-ssi. for days, it troubled me how i would be able to give you your umbrella back." he chuckled, leaning back away from me.

i simply looked at him without words, but it was clear to me that he was already expecting me to say something.

"so? what do you say?" he asked, and so i immediately cleared my throat.

"t-thank you, sir." it was all that came out.

i was still processing how it was such an odd fate. indeed he knew me beforehand, so now i was partly feeling relieved that he had been tailing me not because he knew i was linked to the mr. baek that opposes their family.

"hyungwon-ah!"

suddenly, a girl's voice echoed throughout the hallways which immediately startled both hyungwon and i.

i observed chae hyungwon's face and noticed the sudden shift in his expressions. he suddenly stood up straight upon realizing who it was. because of that, i had to turn back to see for myself, too.

and there, she stood.

kwon eun gyeol.

it was her.

××××××××××××××××××××××××